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Valentin Romero La Yarda Interview

Publication date: 2006
Usage: Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International
Topics: La Yarda (Lawrence, Kan.), Hispanic Americans -- Housing -- Kansas -- Lawrence, Mexican Americans -- History -- Kansas -- Lawrence, Mexican Americans -- Social conditions -- Kansas -- Lawrence
Publisher: Watkins Community Museum (Lawrence, Kan.)
Contributor: Lawrence Public Library (Lawrence, Kan.)
Language: English
Item Size: 3.3G

Valentin Romero was interviewed by Helen Krische in 2006 as part of an oral history project to document the La Yarda and Mexican-American communities in Lawrence, Kansas. La Yarda was a neighborhood of worker housing provided by the Santa Fe Railroad for Mexican-American railroad workers; located near the Kansas (Kaw) River, the neighborhood was largely destroyed by a major flood in 1951. Valentin lived with his parents and siblings in Lawrence's La Yarda neighborhood, and then in East Lawrence. Valentin describes his family's migration from Mexico to Lawrence, his father's work for the railroad, and his school experiences. Valentin discusses his work history, and describes how he met his wife. He describes the living conditions in the La Yarda neighborhood, childhood pasttimes, and social activities of the Mexican-American community in Lawrence and other Kansas towns. Valentin discusses experiences of discrimination and segregation encountered by Mexican-American community members. Valentin also describes the impact of the 1951 flood on the La Yarda neighborhood.